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It's a very comprehensive post, highly recommended. I liked this part:
And this:
I'll be interested to see what he says about BYU.
This is going to be a fun season.
Head coach: Kyle Whittingham (B.Y.U. ’84), 37-14 over three seasons with the Utes. He’s increased Utah’s win total in each of the last four seasons, from seven wins in 2005 to nine in 2007; of course, Utah set a new school-record with 13 victories last fall. Whittingham is the first head coach in Utah history to reach bowl play in each of his first four seasons in charge. Whittingham has also won each bowl game: the 2005 Emerald Bowl (by 38-10 over Georgia Tech), the 2006 Armed Forces Bowl (25-13, Tulsa), the 2007 Poinsettia Bowl (35-32, Navy) and last fall’s Sugar Bowl. His ascension to the head job, coming after Urban Meyer left for Florida, seemed like a logical move; Whittingham had been on the Utah staff for the previous 11 years, including the final 10 as defensive coordinator. However, that bowl season saw Whittingham receive head coaching offers from both Utah and Brigham Young, his alma mater — and Utah’s chief rival. Whittingham was an all-WAC. linebacker for the Cougars (the 1981 WAC Defensive Player of the Year) and spent two years after his graduation as a B.Y.U. graduate assistant. Eventually, Whittingham chose the Utes, though B.Y.U. has certainly not suffered in their choice of Bronco Mendenhall. When you include his 11 seasons as an assistant, Whittingham has participated in 123 wins — more than any coach in the history of the program. Last season’s finish gave Whittingham the national acclaim befitting this talented coach.
And this:
Season breakdown & prediction: I predict a slight decrease in wins for the Utes in 2009 – it’s hard not to coming off a 13-0 season – but I do believe this program has developed beyond the point where anyone should expect anything but a top three finish in the increasingly difficult Mountain West. Utah followed up its last undefeated season, 2004, with a 7-5 record; this slide can be attributed both to a coaching change (Whittingham replaced Urban Meyer) and the loss of a number of key contributors. I would be shocked to see a similar dip in play, though the Utes do have some roster issues while attempting to rebuild without 11 starters from a season ago. The difference? Whittingham. His system now in place, the fifth-year coach has the Utes poised to remain at or near the top of the M.W.C., as well as being one of four or five non-B.C.S.-conference teams who must yearly be considered a potential B.C.S.-buster. Not that I think Utah can repeat last fall’s success: getting T.C.U. and B.Y.U. will keep the Utes from taking the conference, though I don’t see many other M.W.C. teams giving the team much trouble. In all, I think Utah will struggle beating both T.C.U. and B.Y.U. – though a split is possible – while losing to Oregon in non-conference play. A 9-3 regular season record may not be 13-0, but that would keep Utah in the Top 25 while breaking in a new cast.
I'll be interested to see what he says about BYU.
This is going to be a fun season.